Aquila May 2024 (Vol. 14, Issue 3)

editors-in-chief from the farewell

DESIGN

& ILLUSTRATIONS BY NADIA HAMILTON

Insanely enough, my hands have drawn pee stains for this publication when our editorial board ranked UPA’s best bathrooms (upstairs Horton was the obvious winner). They’ve also written articles on skin insecurity, how racist curriculum was changed and even how people experience love. And this year, my hands have even taken scissors to chop off a Barbie doll’s

After the release of each issue, I could walk through the halls or into a classroom and hear a conversation about my contribution. This included hearing new debates about the bathrooms, or agreements with our ranking. Peers told me my love article shifted their perspective on the meaning of love based on each source’s experience. Those instances make me especially proud because they were proof that what I reported on was something of importance to our community. I have fulfilled my duty as a journalist.

To me, journalism has always been tantamount to community. It has been the medium with which I have affected my community and where I’ve found my own. From watching the sun set on our pro duction nights to slime days, every classroom journalism was in became my second home.

Coming into this year, as my final year in journalism and my first being Editor-In-Chief, it was gratifying for my passion and hard work to pay off in this class. But I won’t lie, journal ism was especially difficult. From juggling the weight of my looming future to the responsibilities of editing and advising my new re

porters, I’ll admit it was more than I could handle at times. But the 3 a.m. editing spurts and 5 a.m. college app submissions paid off as we produced three stunning newsmagazines this year and I am off to UC Berkeley! Even though this wasn’t exactly how I pictured my year as EIC, I am more than elated with what it has yielded.

Of course our successes this year were not a single handed job by me, I have many people to thank.

To Chloe and Shayna, what a year. There are not enough words in the universe to describe how grateful I am to the both of you. As my fellow EIC and my managing editor, you two have been the greatest support system and teammates I could ask for.

To my advisors, thank you for being great guides throughout the class. Each of your individual experiences, strengths and kindness to students has been a light to our class. To Ms. Gordon-Reska, Ms. GongGuy and Ms. Wall—I’m grateful to have learned from each of you.

To Angel and Sneha, I am so proud to see this dynamic duo take on EIC next year. Since I’ve met you, you’ve both shown such great dedication and strength. I’m excited to see where you take this publication.

To the seniors of the journalism class of ‘24, I thank you for being beside me in this journey. As the last class to be touched by the pandemic, our passion for this subject has been a testament to our resilience. I am immensely proud of you.

To my former EIC’s, thank you for giving me the opportunities to become who I am today. You all

And to the rest of my staff, you’ve broken my expectations in every way possible and I will always be wowed by you all. Thank you for trusting me to lead you.

To Aquila, thank you for the past four years. I’ve found my footing as a leader, writer and person because of this publication.

Signing off one last time, it has been my honor to serve as your Editor-In-Chief this year. To readers and future journalists (wink wink) please enjoy my final issue and take to heart what journalism is meant to do: fuel new conversations.

Haylie yee

As silly as it may sound, nostalgia has always been a bittersweet concept for me to grasp. What do you mean I can’t travel back in time and relive these memories? I was left with this desperate yearning for the past, to either bask in the sentiment of a moment or redo a regret. However, as my high school countdown goes from four years to four weeks, I only recently started to truly teach myself that everything happens for a reason– my experiences and growth being evidence of that.

I’m sure every student I know has had their fair share of nerve wracking high school experiences. Mine included my very first Zoom interview with Panav Vashishat where I awkwardly questioned him about his biking hobby. Sorry and thank you Mr. President!

As a teenage girl experiencing the harsh consequences of low self esteem, I knew what I wanted to create, but I never seemed to have any confidence in myself to pursue any of it. Perhaps I accidently conformed to a self-fulfilling prophecy, whoops...but as Aquila consistently pushed me out of my comfort zone, I aimed to create things I would be proud of. I will always remember the weeks spent editing a broadcast about my friends and I trying Asian food, learning how to take photos for prom, leaving production nights when it was pitch black outside and recreating movie stills with UPA cou ples from ‘10 Things I Hate About You’ and ‘Clueless’.

doing what most would call “Fake it ‘til you make it”. Looking back at it now, my growth as a student, journalist, and leader have truly made me blossom as a person. If you knew me back in eighth grade, you know what I mean when I say I did a whole 180. Thank you to everyone who believed in me, especially all of my friends who stuck by me as I learned how to navigate my way through this new chapter of my life. I hold you all very close to my heart.

most of you for a very long time. Now all 12 of us will finally leave and I believe we have left quite the legacy and our mark on this publication. I’m proud of all of us.

777 words is not enough to express my gratitude toward Aquila for helping me recognize my love for helping others and for being a safe learning space as I stepped into the position of co-Editor-in-Chief.

My current and former advisors, Ms. Gordon-Reska, Ms. Gong-Guy, and Ms. Wall, I appreciate all the hard work that has been put into aiding us teach and guide our journalism newsroom to success.

My past EIC’s, thank you for entrusting me with Aquila and showing me what I was capable of. To Alexandra and Janessa, thank you for inspiring me as a journalist. A special thank you to Kavi, Akhila and additionally Ms. Gong-Guy, for giving me the chance to prove myself and believing in me even when I didn’t. It means more to me than you know.

Haylie and Shayna, thank you both for being my pillars of support and balance in journalism. Jumping into this position was a huge leap of faith, and as my co-EIC and Managing Editor, you were there for me every step of the way. Cheers to us and our next 4 years together at UC Berkeley!

Finally finding my footing within Aquila, I started to create and learn–

My Aquila staff, I am beyond proud of the work we have accomplished even with every roadblock thrown at us. Finishing this last issue as quickly as we did is no small feat considering the many chaotic production nights we’ve experienced together. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to learn and lead all of you this year with pride. As Aquila leadership transitions from Haylie and I to next year’s EIC, I wish you all the best of luck. I wholeheartedly believe in you and what you will come up with in the next volume of Aquila.

My Aquila seniors, I have been

Although I will never walk through the streets of Gotham (Saint Louis at night) or beautiful Boston during a convention trip with the class again, I am beyond grateful for everything Aquila has taught me and all the opportunities I’ve gotten to experience. I truly still can’t believe I am where I am today. As a letter to my 13 year old self and all of the other anxious young teenagers out there, I implore you to not be so hard on yourself. You did your very best and it will come to fruition. To all Aquila readers, never lose your wistful youth and ceaseless curiosity. There is so much more I want to say but with that being said, please enjoy my final newsmagazine with Aquila: Volume 14, Issue 3– one of my favorites :)

aBouT AQUILA

mISSIoN STaTemeNT

Aquila is a student-produced, student-edited high school newsmagazine. It serves as a designated public forum for student expression. We aim to reflect the diversity of our community and build unity through true and accurate reporting, in hopes that each of our readers will find an article they can connect with.

SHaRe aN IDea

Have a story to share? Scan the QR Code to submit your suggestions or email us at aquila@upatoday.com.

Managing Editor Shayna Tran

Web Manager Abhishek Mynam

Publicity Manager Taylor Nguyen

Multimedia Manager Samira Madden

Web & Publicity Shadow Alexa Garcia

Copy Editor Lead Isaac Rios

Copy Editor CeCe Le Messurier

Copy Editor Gagandeep Kaur

Team Editor Lead Kyla Ulug

Team Editor Celina Tandon

Team Editor Iris Vong

oN THe CoVeR

The front cover, shot by Kyla Ulug and edited by Christopher Park, features nostalgic toys and other items from students’childhoods. Read “Mom I Don’t Want to Grow Up,” on page 17.

STaFF

Editors-in-Chief

Chloe Luu and Haylie Yee

Team Editor Lance Peraza

Team Editor Shibani Ghosh

Team Editor Sneha Madan

Team Editor Zahra Shaikh

Design Editor Angel Froumis

Design Editor Olive Luong

Design Editor Zainab Shaikh

Reporter Aparna Ayyadevara

Reporter Aubrey Phung

Reporter Christopher Park

Reporter Jacob Jimenez

Advisers

Jessica Wall and Kathryn Gong-Guy

Reporter Jessica Do

Reporter Kara Luayon

Reporter Karen Heng

Reporter Layla Daniels

Reporter Lorenzo Almario

Reporter Matthew Tapia

Reporter Nadia Hamilton

Reporter Neha Jral

Reporter Rajeev Devanath

Reporter Shelby Byrd

Reporter Yun Yun Fleischman

TaBle oF CoNTeNTS

a Peek iNTo THe TeaCHeR’S louNGe

NiCe RiDe

eyeS oN THe Sky

IN THe mooD FoR aSiaN FooD

“mom, i DoN’T WaNT To GRoW uP”

WHaT iS youR FaVoRiTe HoT Take?

Reporters Lance Peraza and Matthew Tapia go around UPA asking students what their favorite hot take is.

BeST HoT CHiCkeN SaNDWiCHS iN THe Bay aRea

Three food lovers challenge their taste buds and review three hot chicken sandwiches. Are the hot chicken sandwiches as spicy as they say they are? Let’s find out!

ReaD moRe oN ouR WeBSiTe!

lauFey iN THe Bay BoTTleD uP

I first discovered Laufey’s music in Oct. 2022 after finding her in the similar artist category on Apple Music...

“I enjoy the glimpse of how life is for certain professions, but you’re in fictional settings,” Arumilli said...

“My favorite feature [of the Stanley] is that my water will stay cold all throughout the day,” Bailey said. “Sometimes if I leave...

BHa-Ra-Ta-NaTyam: THe emoTioN, meloDy, aND RHyTHm oF ClaSSSiCal DaNCe oNCe uPoN a k-DRama

“It’s a really beautiful art form where you can express different...

miXiNG meTalS

“It depends on someone’s own personal preference at the end of the day,” Coquilla states...

I first watched the stage musical at the Pantages Theatre on Jan. 4, 2023, in Hollywood with my mom and...

oF aNN

ARTICLE BY SHELBY BYRD • PHOTO BY NADIA HAMILTON • ILLUSTRATIONS & DESIGN BY SAMIRA MADDEN

uPA’s annual tradition, the “Male Pageant,” was established by Kjaira Mohammad—a former English teacher—and ac ademic counselor Sandra Trotch in 2013. It was started as a way to raise money for the senior class and was changed to “The Bachelorette.”

The Male Pageant was a showcase of male upperclassmen showing off their skills, talents, personalities and hobbies. In order to win, they would have to be voted for or most liked by the judges who were selected UPA staff or alumni. The judges scored them based on a rubric that explained the criteria for each different category that they were participating in.

The winners, if seniors, would get a scholarship. The amount of money given to the students was determined by the $10 entry fee for the show. It was then divided amongst each

From left to right, seniors Abhishek Mynam, Panav Vashishat and Mehul Arunarthi on stage during the Bachelorette performing.

only changing the themes and the name of the event,” Eesha Tanugula—another senior committee member—said.

The process of the event tended to be stressful at times but overall worth it. Com ing up with different ideas for their individ ual introductions and performances took a few weeks. It also took time to create the activities and for them to make it as hu morous and entertaining that they possibly could.

This year, the Bachelor emceed by Tanugula and Duong, opened up with a group dance from the contestants. Each team then per formed acts ranging from singing to comedy skits. Afterwards, the groups sat at a candlelit dinner for a question and answer session. At the very end, the Bachelorette—played by Executive Di David Porter—announced the win ner of the night.

Throughout the process, there had been various challenges. The main focus was to teach the boys a dance, choreographed by

helpful to their senior class.

“I am hoping that people will recognize the Male Pageant/Bachelorette is a celebration of the senior class,” Porter said. “It

Students experience their Happily Ever After at Prom

ARTICLE BY IRIS VONG & CECE LE MESSURIER • DESIGN BY ZAHRA SHAIKH • PHOTOS BY IRIS VONG & APARNA

The Senior Prom Committee—composed of ten seniors—coordinated the 2023-2024 “Happily Ever After” Prom at the Coyote Creek Golf Club in Morgan Hill from 6 to 10 p.m. on April 27. Tickets costed $80—from April 1 to April 5—and $85 on April 15. Senior Seminar Coordinator and social science teacher Ariana Rodriguez was the advisor for the committee, aiding in plac ing a reservation for the venue and decorating the venue.

There were many different food options available—such as fettuccine alfredo and broccoli, salad, rice pilaf, chicken and gravy and more. Beverages included iced tea, lemonade and water. It was self-serve style, with glass mason jar dispensers for drinks and desserts lined nicely against a wall on ceramic plates. Next to the dining hall, there was a dance floor with a DJ performing along the wall, and on the far end there was a photo booth for guests to take pictures and have printed out as souvenirs.

Senior Beth Seyoum was nervous about how well this year’s prom compares to last year’s prom located at the Winchester Mystery House. However, she was blown away when she arrived.

“I like this area a lot and how you can go out and take actual pictures,” Seyoum said. “It’s so great here.”

Senior Pamela Hernandez was fond of the nature surrounding the area and considered this venue to be significantly prettier than last years.

“When the sun was going down it made it ten times better [than last year’s prom],” Hernandez said. Seyoum thought the food was simply “okay,” and that if she had the choice she would have had something else; overall, she thought it was better than last year’s and is satisfied that she can enjoy her last prom. Hernandez enjoyed the opportunity to spend time with her friends and found this prom to be quite memorable.

“It’s good getting to see people in dresses and how happy everyone is,” Hernandez said. “We’re making memories.”

Guests near the lake of the venue taking pictures and socializing

Outdoor seating with view of golf course

Students pose for pictures with friends outside of clubhouse

Destinee Baker (12) with her prom date

for a photo

Guests gathered around a photo-op destination

Audrey Sitland (11), Catherine Coquila (11), Abigail Beyene (11), Hanah Serrano (11) and Myolie Nguyen (11) pose with their corsages all bunched together.

Amanda Buccellato (12), Amber Stout (11) and Beth Seyoum (12) pose

A Peek into the Teachers’ Lounge

An inside look at the teachers’ workpace and their professional lives

ARTICLE, PHOTOS, ILLUSTRATION & DESIGN BY GAGANDEEP KAUR

The teachers’ lounge, also referred to as the staff room or “teachers’ heaven,” is a place teachers talk about everything from their lives to their plans for the weekend. Similar to other meeting spots, teachers often use the lounge to print papers, grade tests and socialize with one another.

Math Department Chair Jaswinder Dhillon described the amenities inside the teachers’ lounge as having workspace cubicles, a shared microwave, a mini-fridge and—the main use of the teachers’ lounge—the high-power printers.

English Department Chair Kristin Moore uses the teachers’ lounge for the copiers, paper cutters and light therapy lamps. The lamps mimic sunlight and are usually used around the winter time when one needs more sunlight, also helpful if they have seasonal affective disorder.

Teachers bring dishes nearly every Friday to share with the other staff members.

Science teacher Loren Schwinge and Moore have taught at UPA for 12 years and 14 years respectively; both stated that the

up sheet for “Foodie Friday” every semester post COVID-19. Signing up for “Foodie Friday” is voluntary as there are around 13 slots or so for the teachers to sign up, however more slots can always be added if they would like to bring more food.

“I think it is very useful. It is a nice place to kind of just hear fearsome complaints or some encouragement or some smiles.“ -August Siu

Students are usually not allowed to use the teachers’ lounge due to the easy accessibility to future tests. However, the only time they are allowed to enter the lounge is when retrieving copies from the printer for their teachers depending if the teachers inside will allow them to do so. Moore is strict with her policies and reminds the students every time she is there.

Friday tradition of bringing dishes is older than their times at UPA.

Moore believes it started as teachers bringing baked goods once in a while every Friday, eventually becoming an official tradition. Notably, it temporarily stopped because of COVID-19.

Schwinge and Moore partnered up to bring back the tradition by making a sign-

“We just buy it,” Dhillon said. “Sometimes people make stuff, [but] a lot of times people just buy it.”

There is not a specific budget on the food since it depends on the teacher’s personal choice to participate and whether to make it or buy it. Last semester, Dhillon and math teacher Esther Chen partnered up and brought Panda Express for all the teachers, and Schwinge partnered up with Moore to serve teachers with Trader Joe’s themed snacks.

Dhillon enjoys the Korean snacks and dishes Director of Curriculum and Instruction Jean Mastrogiacomo brings, with a personal favorite being her kimbap. Nathalie Tran, assistant to the Executive Director, and Mastrogiacomo brought Korean fried chicken, glass noodles, kimbap, egg rolls and more on March 8.

“She would bring a whole assortment of Korean dishes and snacks,” Dhillon said. “Some rolls of sushi like kimchi cheese sushi and all these cool Korean snacks.”

Like Dhillon, Schwinge and Moore, math teacher August Siu also agreed that Mastrogiacomo brings the best food while also catering to different types of options for teachers with different diets. Siu’s favorite dish, however, is Spanish teacher Aimee Verapinto’s guacamole.

“Every teacher’s dish is really well [made], all the food is good,” Siu said.

While enjoying the delicious food provided by other teachers, teachers also enjoy working inside the lounge. Normally, Siu makes her lesson plans and grades assignments and tests in the lounge since she is easily distracted in her class.

During open periods, Dhillon uses the teacher’s lounge for practical and personal reasons. He makes copies with the printer at least once a day, and works in the lounge to work more efficiently since his classroom distracts him from working.

The teachers’ lounge positively impacts Siu’s day as it is a very useful and nice place for her. She hears complaints, compliments, occasional gossip and receives a lot of smiles from other staff members. Dhillon enjoys going there to relax, disconnect from home, be productive and engage in conversations with his fellow colleagues.

Moore only uses the lounge once or twice a week; she only uses it to make copies. She acknowledged other teachers go into grade, when they need a quiet place and get work done during their open periods. Inside the lounge, she talks to teachers regarding their plans for the weekend which can lead to random conversations on random subjects.

The lounge becomes especially busy during periods one through four. Teachers have busy schedules, so to communicate with each other they use a shared teacher calendar. Every month, a staff member creates it with reminders of staff meetings and other important events for teachers.

Other than talking at the teachers’ lounge, staff members communicate using emails and Slack, often sending pictures to each other to stay connected on a professional and personal level. Siu recalled when Visual and Performing Arts teacher Cameron Seibly went to India, he sent pictures of his vacation.

Schwinge enjoys interacting with all teachers old and new. She visits Spanish teacher Jarjour Hernandez, as well as Dhillon and Moore, for fun ideas.

Schwinge felt the teachers’ lounge originally was very unappealing so she helped decorate it and make it plant-themed,

Schwinge also believes the lounge can still use some work to improve.

Moore appreciates Schwinge’s effort to renovate the lounge by changing the curtains, replacing the old school supplies and throwing out the old soda machine, which she disliked for the noise it made and being one of the reasons she avoided the lounge room. UPA has only two copier machines so she would like to add a third one as the machines are almost always out of toner or they are jammed.

Dhillon wishes to add a couch to the teacher’s lounge to relax and sometimes take naps on and enlarge the lounge space. Like Dhillon, Schwinge would also like to add more space to the lounge, space to relax on a comfy chair and decompress.

Siu also shares Dhillon’s wishes to make the lounge more spacious, since teachers often have trouble finding space as there are not enough cubicles for all the teachers

to sit and work together. Siu particularly enjoys seeing other teachers, as she does not get to see them as often due to her busy schedule.

“I think it is very useful,” Siu said. “It is a nice place to hear fearsome complaints or some encouragement or some smiles.”

of all the resources inside UPAs’ teachers’ lounge.

Picture

Illustration of the ideal teachers’ lounge as described by the teachers’.

nice ride

UPA upperclassmen drivers share details about their cars and what makes them unique

ARTICLE, DESIGN & ILLUSTRATIONS BY RAJEEV DEVANATH

rom the iconic red Solara with the black hood to the gray Hyundai Ioniq EV, there are plenty of unique cars that can be found in the UPA student parking lot. Majority of the students at UPA commute to school through cars, and some upperclassmen even drive on their own. Of those students are some with some interesting cars regarding design, speed, aesthetics, and even cool customization features that they have added to personalize the vehicle.

Senior Bilaal Syed drives a red 1999 Toyota Camry Solara SLE, which his mom owned originally and gave to him as a gift.

“To be honest, it’s a very unique car, you don’t see it around very often,” Syed said. “Although it’s old, it was the highest trim [for its time], having every luxury item such as cigarette lighters, leather interiors, collapsible seats and a V6 engine.”

Being a Toyota, the car is really durable and almost immortal according to Syed.

“You can throw [Toyotas] around, crash them, rev them up all the way to 9000RPM, whatever you want, and it will not break.” Syed said.

For Syed, the car also has a really heavy sentimental value. The car belongs to his family, as it is a symbol of many important moments in their lives.

Audrey Sitland’s (11) 2018 Mustang.

Junior Audrey Sitland drives a black 2018 Mustang which she got three days after she got her license at 16. Sitland really likes the leather seats in her car and finds it unique that the door projects a mustang horse on the floor when opened. Sitland also decorated the car by adding a pink border around her license plate and a dog on the dashboard.

“[The car] has gone through teaching me how to drive, and eventually is going to go through teaching my brother how to drive.” Syed said.

For example, his mother paid the car’s down payment with her first paycheck after getting her first job in the U.S, symbolizing a moment of prospering as an immigrant. Syed’s daily commute is driving to and from school, a drive that is 15 minutes because he drives against traffic from Santa Clara. Syed’s car means a lot to him, and he plans to keep it forever. Although he wants to get a new car soon, the sentimental meaning that the Toyota has to him makes him want to keep it in his family forever.

“There’s no way I’m ever going to sell this car because of the sentimental meaning it has to me,” Syed said.

“[My favorite memories with the car are] driving my friends around, and going to football games,” Sitland said.

Sitland’s daily commute is usually 30 minutes one way, and she has to refuel around once every two weeks.

“I [had always] wanted a mustang, but my dream car is just like any sports car because they’re cute,” Sitland said.

Bilaal Syed’s (12) 1999 Toyota Camry Solara SLE.

Senior Zahir Ali drives a gray 2008 Porsche Cayenne. During Ali’s junior year, he got his license for the first time and his parents gave him the car.

“It was the cheapest [that we had], the beater,” Ali said. “So my parents gave me that one because the other cars were newer, and for insurance purposes it made the most sense.”

Ali mostly enjoys the sound of his car.

“It sounds crazy when you [accelerate],” Ali said. “You don’t see it around often in this generation because it’s old.”

The car’s 3.6L V6 engine allows for a really powerful sound, which Ali loves hearing while he accelerates. Since Ali’s car is an older sport utility vehicle (SUV) model, he believes it is slow for a Porsche. Ali enjoys the aesthetic and vibe of the car, adding tints to the windows to increase the aesthetic appeal. Ali’s daily commute to school is around 30 to 40 minutes both

Senior Mehul Arunarthi drives a black 2011 BMW 328i with a six cylinder engine. Arunarthi’s car is small and low to the ground, features that give it a smooth coast and acceleration. Arunarthi got the car in Sept. 2023 when he was 17, since he crashed his previous 2018 BMW X1 in an accident.

“Basically, I was turning in and then a guy beat a red,” Arunarthi said, “so I had to swerve around him and I hit a rock, got a flat, and the front chassis kind of bent inward,”

A feature that he appreciates about his car is the uniquely colored interior.

“I haven’t seen that color in any other car,” Arunarthi said. “It’s orange-ish brown-ish and it’s really unique.”

Arunarthi’s daily commute is between

home and school, a drive which usually takes him 20 minutes, requiring him to refuel once a week.

“Personally, I accelerate a lot so I burn a lot of gas quickly,” Arunarthi said.

To Arunarthi, his car means everything to him, and he believes that every person’s car sort of defines their personality.

“Bilaal’s car is very him, my car is very me,” Arunarthi said.

Driving at night alone is when Arunarthi enjoys driving most, as it gives him time to get away from everything and just drive for fun. Arunarthi’s dream car is a Mclaren P1 because of its genius manufacturing and beautiful design.

ways, and he often refuels his gas tank once every two days.

To Ali, his car means everything.

“It’s like a blessing,” Ali said. “A lot of kids don’t have cars to move around. It’s like freedom, if I want to go somewhere. I can just hop in the whip, go somewhere, and hangout with my friends.” Ali said.

Ali’s favorite memory with his car is when he and his friends drove to Semperviren Point.

“It’s a really nice scenic drive and all the boys in three [cars] were just driving, chillin, cruising, it was cool,” Ali said.

In the future, Ali hopes to be able to purchase his dream car—a Porsche 911 GTRS— because of its looks, its speed, and its sound.

“I’ve driven one before and the handling is crazy good,” Ali said. “Gotta be my favorite car.”

Senior Sana Purdhani drives a gray Hyundai IONIQ 5, an electric car that she got in Aug. 2023. Purdhani used to drive a Tesla that she shared with her parents, but it started to not work as well. Her parents decided to buy her a new, more reliable electric car for her to drive.

“I don’t really have a preference necessarily [towards electric cars], but we have a lot of solar panels at home, so my dad wanted to get an electric car to utilize that.” Purdhani said.

Purdhani really likes driving the car in sports mode because of its quick acceleration, and appreciates the amount of space in the car due to it being electric, allowing for a lot of legroom.

Purdhani believes that the shape and design of the car makes it unique, as it is different from most cars. Purdhani’s daily commute is going to school, going to work, getting groceries, and sometimes dropping her sister off; usually, she does not have to charge the car very often.

“It goes around 300 miles on a full charge, and I charge it about once a week,” Purdhani said.

Purdhani most enjoys the freedom that comes with having her car, as she is able to go hang out with her friends or wherever she wants to go without having to get her parents to drive her.

Mehul Arunarthi’s (12) 2011 BMW 328i.

Sana Purdhani’s (12) Hyundai IONIQ five.

Zahir Ali’s (12) 2008 Porsche Cayenne.

Eyes on the Skies

Passionate astronomy enthusiasts articulate their life connections and experiences with space throughout their life

ARTICLE BY YUN YUN FLEISCHMAN & CELINA TANDON • ILLUSTRATION & DESIGN BY CELINA TANDON

Constellations and star maps have been found all throughout history—from ancient cave markings and philosopher scrolls to the interests of present day students. These fascinations in stars and what is held in the world above captivated students from UPA. These students went on to pursue this growing passion for the sky.

Senior Gorisha Runthala had a fascination with stars, which soon expanded into galaxies and black holes. Runthala’s curiosity in space sprouted from middle school, where her parents urged her to begin creating a plan of what career path she wanted to take. Runthala felt that because she had come from immigrant parents, a career in computer science was the expectation.

“I was really upset about [my parents’ career expectation] because I didn’t know what I was doing, and I didn’t want it to seem like that,” Runthala said. “Usually, when things go wrong or if something’s bad, I would sit in my room and look at the stars because it’s easy and the comfort is right there.”

After retreating to her room with just herself and the stars, Runthala realized that her passion lay in astronomy and that was the career that she set upon herself to pursue.

Similarly, Tyler Yuen, a 2022 UPA graduate, and alumni, found a love for aerospace towards astronautics, or the study of human space travel and exploration.

“I used to go with my dad to this air show in San Francisco on Fleet Week,” Yuen said. “Watching the fighter jets and all those huge aircraft flying was really interesting to me.”

Around the age of 12, Yuen’s father took him to his first air show in San Francisco where fighter jets and large aircraft would fly across the sky, now attending the shows annually. These shows began the spark for Yuen’s passion for aerospace.

On the other hand, UPA teacher Elisheva Bailey teaches biology, human body systems and medical interventions. However, her science interests first began in space and it sprouted in high school. As her mom pushed her to constantly ask questions while growing up, she became curious about the phenomena that space held, discovering question after question about space.

When her father started a career in building parts for space shuttles while she was in high school, he would receive items like patches and stickers. To young Bailey, these “gadgets” he got from his work inspired her to look further into what space had to offer. In contrast to Runthala’s interest in space, Bailey soon discovered that she was not interested in the stars, but in how the bodies of astronauts are affected due to UV radiation. She found that with an increase in radiation and a lack of gravity in space, human bodies are affected.

“I specialize in anatomy and physiology, so I know the human body inside and out,” Bailey said. “And to understand how changes from being out in space affects us is really interesting.”

With the same amount of curiosity targeted at a different field in space exploration, sophomore Sai Indukuri found an interest involving spacecrafts and their dynamics. His interest in astronautics began at a young age when he first traveled to England from India by plane.

“The shape of [the airplane] was really nice,” Indukuri said. “Just sitting inside flying in the air thousands of feet in the air was really cool.”

After envisioning becoming an astronaut in third grade, his perspective began to change in the sixth grade when he saw a YouTube video of a production from SpaceX—a company that builds reusable rockets and spacecraft.

“They were making reusable rockets, and it gave me chills seeing the [rocket] fly away and seeing everyone’s reactions,” Indukuri said. “So I was like, this is something I really want to do in the future.”

As a sophomore in college, Yuen is working on projects to build microsatellites and participates in clubs like the AIAA (American Institutes of Aeronautics and Astronautics). His college courses also consist majorly of aerospace related classes, like a class for writing engineering reports, aero-

structures, and aerodynamics. While Bailey’s interest in space lives on, her interest shifted into a bi-

ological part of science.

“Only from a biology perspective [would I be interested in an astronautics career] but it’s very difficult to get into. [And] I do not have a PhD, [which NASA] usually wants people to have. That was not something I was willing to do,” Bailey said.

Because of the difficulties in an astronautics career and the shift in her scientific interests, she ultimately chose the career of a science teacher.

Runthala, on the other hand, continued her interest in space during high school through research, community college courses and clubs that participated in competitions surrounding the topic. She joined the Civil Air Patrol—a program like the Air Force but designed for middle and high schoolers—and built her first rockets. She took astronomy courses offered at De Anza College and Evergreen Valley College. She researched on Wikipedia to expand her knowledge about galaxies and black holes.

school to expand his interest.

While it is difficult to find high school opportunities in astronomy, Indukuri makes sure to join as many engineering courses as he can that UPA offers to help him with his dreams in aerospace engineering. One outstanding extracurricular he joined in the eighth grade was robotics with a group of friends, of which he participated in competitions outside of school.

“Doing robotics [made me want to pursue aerospace],” Indukuri said. “Once I started to do robotics, I just loved building things. Everything I could build, I did.”

During Yuen’s time at UPA, he felt that the high school did support his passion for aerospace. By becoming the co-president of an aerospace club in highschool, he was able to expand his knowledge in the field of aerospace.

“I think that real-world projects [of UPA help, as you] go and talk to people in the [aerospace] industry,” Yuen said. “It helped me with social skills and being able to reach out to strangers and talk to people in developing interview skills.”

Although Bailey took a different path in her career than space, she still tries to incorporate her interest in space into her life, which she has recently done in 2021 through a summer internship program with NASA. In the program, she mentored students to help them develop projects and potential labs to be used on the International Space Station.

“It’s always in the back of my mind. My love for science and space.”

- Elisheva Bailey

However, in her journey through learning about space, she was faced with challenges. Both Runthala and Indukuri realized that UPA did not offer many opportunities to delve into astronomy or astronautics. While Runthala found UPA’s courses helpful in developing research skills, she wishes there were astronomy-focused classes she could take. Indukari joined engineering in hopes of learning more about astronautics, but soon also joined projects outside of

“[Before the internship, I wasn’t as aware] how radiation and all the components that are up there can affect us down here, as well as up there,” Bailey said. “I didn’t realize it as much, but once I got through the internship I did a lot of work, looking at the twin study. So, it’s really made me more aware.”

Similarly, Yuen recently was accepted into a Summer internship for NASA, where he will be exploring and studying scientific research conducted from a satellite sent to the moon.

These four astronomy enthusiasts, while pursuing slightly different fields of space, all have a passion for astronomy.

“It’s always in the back of my mind,” Bailey said. “My love of science and space.”

IN THE MOOD FOR ASIAN FOOD

Ranch, balsamic vinaigrette and ginger sesame miso dressing—which one does not belong?

ARTICLE, PHOTOS, ILLUSTRATIONS & DESIGN BY OLIVE LUONG

Pocky, dried mangoes and Jim Jam Biscuits—these are just a few of the Asian-originated snacks that have made it into the mainstream grocery markets of the U.S.

Attracted by the gold rush two centuries ago and Silicon Valley today, a diverse variety of immigrants poured and continue to pour into the San Francisco-José and Los Angeles area. Bringing their many distinctive cultures with them, generations of immigrants established semi-enclaves where they landed. From these enclaves sprouted hundreds of diverse businesses, which immigrants and their descendants would visit to find community and a reminder of home.

Among these businesses, grocery and food stores were the most prominent, with 37% of food businesses being owned by immigrants. Food is quite literally a “taste of home” and connects people. Culture-specific grocery stores have since flourished.

According to Pew Research Center, Asians are the second largest immigrant group in the U.S.. California has the highest number of Asian Americans with 30% of all Asian Americans residing in the state. Asian Americans are predicted to become the largest immigrant group, surpassing Hispanics, in 2055. This statistic is reflect-

ed in the booming business of Asian grocery stores, products and goods to appeal to the demographic.

In recent years,

interest in those Asian foods and products has in - creased. According to The Washington Post, Asian quick-service food sales rose by 135% over the past 25 years. This development brings about an evident question: what provoked it?

Sophomore Meghana Satty believes that the variety of Asian snacks available sparked their rise to popularity. “Asian” is

an umbrella term that covers an entire continent made up of dozens of ethnic groups. From these groups came a wide range of culinary tastes, cooking tactics and food products.

“All the different kinds are very

South Asian dishes such as garlic naan, butter chicken and sriracha shrimp sold at Trader Joe’s.

addictive,” Satty said.

Eighth grader Sophia Nguyen enjoys the wide assortment of Asian snacks, often buying Pocky’s, jelly sticks and ramen noodles as her staples. She frequently visits Vietnamese cuisine-specialized grocery stores such as Lee’s Supermarket and Ocean Supermarket. In the last few years, Nguyen has noticed that non-Asian grocery stores have started selling Asian snacks. Costco, for example, began to include mooncakes, shredded pork and other delicacies in their catalog during the Lunar New Year. Since 2006, shoppers have recorded Costco selling East Asian snacks enjoyed during certain holidays and have recently noticed dedicated year-round sections to Asian snacks.

Other U.S. grocery stores also have increased their selling of Asian products. As of late, Walmart has started to expand its variety of instant noodles to include the TikTok-viral Samyang Rose Buldak Ramen with the Walmart on Story Road having dedicated half an aisle to instant noodles. Instant noodles, being sold in the U.S. since 1972, are among many of the Asian products that have long been ingrained in markets here.

At the many grocery stores now offering Asian foods in their inventory, Satty

Various East Asian drinks such as peach oolong tea, ginseng root drink and milk tea sold at Costco.

has noticed an evident spike in their popularity and consumer pool, with non-Asian people buying these products and enjoying them too.

“I have a few friends who are American but get ramen every single day,” Satty said.

Satty believes this to be positive since it brings awareness to other cultures.

“I think anyone can eat what they want,” Satty said. “If they like it and it tastes good then it’s fine.”

Chemistry teacher Reo Sato believes that social media plays a key role in the rise of Asian snacks.

“With social media, it’s more visible to a larger audience,” Sato said. “People are becoming more exposed to certain snacks and things.”

Sato recalls seeing Buzzfeed YouTube videos where two people from different cultures shared snacks they enjoyed. Since Buzzfeed is a well-reputed channel with millions of subscribers, other channels followed with the variety of snack-swap videos garnering millions of views, viewers likewise becoming interested in other cultures and sharing their favorite snacks.

Nguyen also believes social media stimulated the increase of interest in Asian snacks.

“A lot of [Asian snacks are] trending on social media with people showing they’re eating it,” Nguyen said.

Apps such as TikTok and Instagram have been prominent trend-spreaders with their quick information sharing and widespread use. When people see other people enjoying different things, it can influence them to try it too. TikTok Shop, the online market which allows creators to sell products directly through TikTok, has also begun to sell Asian snacks.

“They think their business can do well if they sell some of it,” Nguyen said.

The increased sale of Asian snacks has benefited Nguyen.

“For some places,” Nguyen said, “they make Asian snacks actually more affordable and given in a bigger pack in a

more affordable amount.”

The change has also benefited Sato in many ways. Sato frequents American grocery stores like Safeway and Costco

”A N y ONE c AN EAT w HAT

THE y w ANT “ - MEGHANA

SATT y

as well as the Asian supermarket, 99 Ranch Market, for groceries. Sato has noticed that Safeway and Costco have begun to offer Japanese snacks like Kasugai

Gummies, Chocorooms and Yakult. This has made it easier for him to access snacks he would otherwise have to get from more distant stores.

“I remember when I was growing up,” Sato said, “if I wanted Japanese snacks, I would specifically have to go

to a Japanese grocery store like Mitsuwa.”

Compared to Safeway’s 242 stores in California, there are only seven Mitsuwa Markets in California.

“My mom would always complain about having to drive to a certain location to get groceries,” Sato said, “because it’s just really far away from where we lived and so having a little bit more options is good overall.”

Sato also finds that peoples’ increased openness to experiencing new cultures is a positive change. When he was younger and bringing a home lunch to school, Sato recalls his peers being weirded out by the fish in his rice balls having eyes. Nowadays, Sato believes that people are not as freaked out by things they have not previously experienced as they gain more exposure through social media.

“It’s not like a weird thing they’re suddenly seeing at the lunch table anymore,” Sato said. “People are kind of more accepting.”

Asian snacks have had an explosive skyrocket to popularity, with many agreeing that the change and increase in awareness of other cultures is welcome.

“I think sharing culture is fun and having others try your culture and appreciate it is really nice,” Nguyen said.

East and Southeast Asian noodle dishes such as tteokbokki, udon and pho sold at Costco.

“ mom, i don\ ’ t want to grow up ”

Bracelet making, building blocks, & trading cards - going back in time with nostalgic childhood hobbies

ARTICLE BY IRIS VONG • PHOTO COURTESY OF PRATHEEK MADDERLA • DESIGN & ILLUSTRA

-

GTIONS BY KARA LUAYON

rowing up, students watched cartoons, rode tricycles, played on playgrounds and got scuffedup knees accompanied by sandfilled socks in sandboxes.

As kindergarteners, the idea of limitless freedom associated with being a teen and becoming a full-grown adult at 21 had always been a faraway fantasy for many students. Entering middle school, common worries included: fitting in, having social media, wearing cool clothes and one’s crush liking them back. But as students journey through highschool and realize that graduation and “adulting” are coming soon, carefree childhoods become replaced with stress for: getting into a good college, securing a job and being in the driver’s seat—literally and metaphorically; for the new elements in student lives that were something their parents were in charge of. These reminiscing moments hit especially hard for older students like senior Alexis Le.

Engaging in hobbies together since childhood allows siblings to develop special bonds with one another that they want to relive. Le stays involved with the Pokémon world because of its nostalgic value—remembering playing and watching her brother battle when they were younger. Since her family played with, traded and passed

down Pokémon cards, Le grew to like the game from a young age.

As she prepares to graduate high school in a few months, Le spends more time watching and playing Pokémon to reminisce about the good old days when she had more time to play.

“The nostalgia is something that I really want to hold on to,” Le said. “Now, things are moving so fast and then like with the new games, I’m reminded of Pokemon cards and collecting those types of things.”

By growing up with animated games, Le has grown interested in computer science and game design, incorporating Pokémon in some college essays, aspiring to one day make interactive games like her childhood hobby.

Le cherishes Pokemon and does not believe she will ever retire from the hobby.

“I don’t think there’s gonna be a point where I just drop the content,” Le said. “I mean, of course it’ll die down over time, but it’s something that’s just gonna stick with me for a very long time.”

With uncertain futures on the horizon, high school students try to go back by spending more time on their childhood hobbies. Freshman Saanvi Bandaaru remembers making rainbow looms with her second-grade class

daaru said. “Life was so much fun hanging out with my old friends, not having much to worry about and not having much homework in second to third grade. It’s therapeutic and reminds me of times when I made them more.”

Forming childhood friendships with the help of kits like Rainbow Loom, Bandaaru had grown fond of the memories created whenever she thinks back to the bands she made and still makes them now to continue her friendships. Remembering the bright time in her life, Bandaaru associates the toy with the board game Candyland, the Rainbow Magic book series and the summer of 2017.

With school becoming more demanding, having time to pursue a childhood hobby rewards students with a break from school and social life. Sophomore Soham Bhatia recently jumped back into his old love for Pokémon. He initially gained a pas sion for Pokémon during its initial release when he was nine. Although he took a break during the summer of 2018 due to schoolwork, he never completely lost his enthusiasm for playing. He eventually found time during the fall of last year to re-explore his childhood joy and developed a love for the game’s anime.

“I became reinvested in the anime present in the

er version of the game called Pokemon GO, Bhatia enjoys

“It makes me feel happy, especial ly because I’m out in the world ex ercising,” Bhatia said. “It was also a big part of me growing up so it’s definitely something to enjoy.”

Students have also de veloped a liking for a hobby from watching shows. Freshman Pratheek Mad derla grew up watching Nin jago and a vari ety of oth er LEGO shows that ultimately turned his lik ing for LEGOs into an ob session.

“I SUPPOSE REMEMBERING MY CHILDHOOD REMINDS ME OF HAPPY TIMES. THE NOSTALGIA IS SOMETHING THAT I REALLY WANT TO HOLD ON TO.” - ALEXIS LE

Being recruited into a hob by by family and friends during childhood, students usually asso

“If I go to London I want to build Big Ben,” he said. “If I go to Disney, I’d want a Disney build.”

Le remains loyal to the card game as her final year in highschool comes to an end.

“I suppose remembering my childhood reminds me of happy times. The nostalgia is something that I really want to hold on to.”

Madderla as a one year old poses in a garage on a pink tricycle putting on a pair of bright green shades

12 GOING

ON 20

Why Gen Alpha is so eager to shop in beauty stores and the necessary changes that need to be made

ARTICLE, PHOTOS, & DESIGN BY LAYLA DANIELS • PHOTO COURTESY OF SEPHORA

If you have been to a beauty store like Sephora recently, you might have noticed the unusual presence of 9 to 10-year-old children. They can usually be seen messing with the makeup samples in the stores, buying all the ‘trending’ items, disrupting displays, and being impolite to other customers.

I think social media is one of the reasons for the uprising of kids in stores like Sephora. One of the main goals of social me dia is to influence people and over the past few years, social media has grown in both its reach and its influence exponentially.

More and more younger audiences are being exposed to all of the trends and in fluences on social media. They see cer tain videos on social media and want to mimic what they see, especially tweens and young girls ranging from 9 to 12-years-old. These girls might see older teens or young adults get ting ready on social media plat forms, and want to do the

same and follow the trends that they see. This kind of thing even happens to me, where sometimes I will see certain things that are trending and popular, and think, “Oh that looks cool, I want that,” which is why I believe that influence is the reason for the uprising in younger generations wanting skincare routines. These “get ready with me” style of videos usually picture someone getting ready for their day by using skincare and makeup products. The products are typically marketed towards adults and older teens because they are made to treat things

“Once you grow up you can never just be a kid again”

Bubble moisturizer, and the Laneige lip mask.

my skin. I think Spending hours outside enjoying childhood is much more memorable than buying your first skincare product.

Another problem with kids in beauty stores is the effect on the stores themselves, and the customers in them. Many people who have been to a Sephora recently have shared stories of kids snatching items out of their hands as well as destroying the samples and displays in the store.

The last couple of times I’ve been to Sephora, the store was a mess, all the samples were either missing or completely destroyed. There were many lit-

kids are causing to the store. If parents did know, then they could talk to their kids about some alternatives to expensive, and unnecessary; skincare and makeup.

Many people, including myself, want to stop normalizing kids acting like adults. Of course it is fine to use some makeup and skincare as a teen, but at nine years old; having a full skincare and makeup routine is a bit much.

A ten step expensive skincare routine for a nine year old is unnecessary, and a routine that is more simple would be better suited for their skin’s health, considering most 10 year old’s skin doesn’t really need the products that they are using.

I also think many kids don’t even really know what the skincare they are using is actually even supposed to do for their skin. They just use it because they saw it on the

adults and teens use are unnecessary and harmful for someone at a young age according to the New York Post. This is because they can disrupt the natural process of the skin cycle and cause premature damage. Specific products that should be avoided are retinol and chemical acids that can erode a skin’s barrier, and cause unwanted reactions. Many trending products that currently have these ingredients are the Ordinary AHA and BHA mask, and the Glow Recipe Watermelon Toner.

Since the newer generation, also known as Generation alpha (born 2010-2024), has spent a lot of their childhood watching videos online such as get ready with mes, they are used to them. They believe that it is normal for them to be using the products that are shown in those videos. However, I believe that kids should be doing things such as playing video games, playing with toys, or spending their days outside because that is what I did as a kid growing up.

There are many reasons why playing with toys and going outside is better for kids than playing with makeup or skincare. According to the National Library of Medicine, playing with toys and games contributes to the development of a child’s cognitive, motor, emotional, linguistic skills and abilities.

Personally, I can also say I find it much more enjoyable to go outside and hang out with my friends, rather than obsessing over

stores like Sephora to add an age entrance restric tion. I think this is unlikely because that would be a lot of work for the stores to enforce, and that decision could come with the cost of fewer cus tomers, such as many young er kids, and adults that don’t want to go through the hassle of an age check.

reason for younger kids in Sephora is the parent ing of kids in Generation Alpha. I think parents probably don’t know the harsh effects of the prod ucts many young kids are using, or the effects that

A messy Drunk Elephant moisturizer sample at Sephora.

A play lipstick and kids nail polish, the version of makeup I used as a kid.

ARTICLE BY NADIA HAMILTON • DESIGN BY ZAINAB SHAIKH

let’s talk about

sex

Anonymous members of the UPA community share about their sexual experiences and how their perceptions have been influenced

There is a stigma surrounding sex in our society despite the growing presence of it. Whether through mainstream media, music, friends, social media, or family members, sexual concepts can be found everywhere. However, the only way to know what’s real or fake is through others’ experiences in your community.

Student DeMarcus first encountered the concept of sex when he was seven-yearsold, when his parents gave his oldest sister “the talk” using a presentation.

“When they taught it to her, they had all the younger ones find out,” DeMarcus said. “They had us all lined up and showed it to us and said, ‘This is how babies are made.’”

Similarly, student Peter’s parents introduced the concept to him when he entered high school. They taught him about safe sex—the use of protection like condoms— the risk of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and more.

“[The talk] made me want to be more aware,” Peter said. “[Sex] is not something you should rush. I think that it is definitely something that should come at the right time.”

However, parents may not be the first to discuss sexual topics with their children. Student Dory heard about sex through her peers in second grade without prior parental introduction.

“My parents are both immigrants, so I didn’t get ‘the talk,’” Dory said. “I found out everything, sadly, through my peers.”

She felt she was given the wrong impression of what sexual relationships were like based on what she heard from her peers who explained their situations. Later, when she entered middle school, sex was normalized in Dory’s community; her peers often spoke about their experiences.

“Now it’s super normal,” Dory said. “Not only with my peers, but even on social media. On TikTok, on your For You page or if you’re watching [Instagram] Reels, there are a lot of posts about sex.”

Like Dory, teacher Betty was introduced to sex through her peers throughout middle and high school. Identifying as bisexual, Betty knew she was queer from a young age, but was taught to be careful about who she shared her sexuality with because of societal views.

Throughout high school, sex was not a very common subject in her friend group, but she felt it became more normalized in college. Many of the girls living in her dorm would talk about the drama of people’s relationships. However, these perspectives were based on their heterosexual experiences, and at the time, Betty had no exposure to

Editor’s Note: The following article contains topics surrounding sexual intercourse and assault. Due to such sensitive topics, names have been changed to protect UPA student and staff identities. people’s experiences in queer relationships.

“There weren’t a lot of people I could talk to and ask questions about,” Betty said. “I didn’t know how things were supposed to go.”

Both Dory and DeMarcus agree that media portrayals of sex—whether it is the picture perfect fantasy of a one night stand—are unrealistically exaggerated.

“The first time, I imagined myself being fresh in high school,” DeMarcus said. “In the movies, that’s how it shows them. You get into high school, you meet someone way older than you, and that person shows you how to do it.”

DeMarcus realized that this idea is unrealistic. He heard diverse views on intimacy that he believes to be only partially true. From the media specifically, he has seen sex scenes that take place in a very fancy set up. He believes this to be untrue and gives people unrealistic expectations of sex.

“The media portrays boys to be always horny,” DeMarcus said. “Some of the boys I know are horny, but a lot aren’t. They don’t really get into that type of stuff.”

DeMarcus thinks that some people sexually express themselves very outright, which can encourage students to do the same. However, he feels this openness leads to the incorrect perception of teenage boys including himself. Stereotyping all teenage boys into a generalized category can be harmful because everyone is different.

Peter expected sex to be more confusing than it actually was his first time because of the usage of slang terms in media portray als like in the show “Big Mouth.”

“It scared me a little bit because it also taught me that people do have expecta tions,” Peter said.

This concern of not meeting his part ner’s expectations continued to affect him when he had sex for the first time. In Do ry’s opinion, sex is often depicted too casu ally in shows.

“It’s not that easy in real life. It’s a lot more serious,” Dory said. “When you have sex with somebody, you don’t just have sex with somebody. That’s a really deep con nection that you’re forming with that per son.”

Based on Dory’s experience on so cial media and what she heard from those around her, she thinks that guys are able to move on from relationships more quickly,

and girls end up upset because of an emotional connection formed.

“[The normalization of sex] just kind of baffles me because I know it’s so normal, especially in our generation,” Dory said. “I feel like they just see too much of a ‘no strings attached’ type thing.”

Teacher Amelia thinks some people feel so pressured to have sex because they believe that is what their peers are doing. In the media, adult actors playing teenagers perform sex scenes that can place pressure on high school students who do not want to be left behind.

“I think the media presents it as you’re

women may not have that same pressure.

“A lot of it is all the constant exposure to social media and what is normalized about how couples are supposed to act,” Amelia said. “I think a lot of those social scripts are pertaining to the video-based media that we’re consuming in a way that it just simply did not exist in my generation.”

Prior to having sex for the first time, music heavily influenced Dory’s perception of sex. In the music she listens to, artists sing about having sex while being under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or having one night stands. Artists made sex seem like it is not a big deal.

“...I don’t think [the media] gives kids the tools to know how to talk about things,” - Amelia

To curate a more accurate idea of sex, DeMarcus has turned to his older brothers’ experiences, as well as his own. His older brothers and his friends agreed that many media depictions are exaggerated and explained their own perceptions of sex.

“They said that it’s a sign that you’re starting to grow up and you’re not a kid anymore,” DeMarcus said. “I didn’t do it for that reason, but they told me once you do it, you’ll realize you’re growing up.”

Dory lost her virginity to a mutual friend who she did not usually interact with. She was expecting her

just supposed to know what to do,” Ame lia said. “Everything always works, it’s just this very huge, exclusive thing. It’s not very accurate. I don’t think [the media]

meant a lot because I’d never been that vulnerable with somebody,” Dory said. “The fact that he would be seeing me like that for the first time and we would just go on like nothing ever happened, I did not believe that would be real.”

For DeMarcus, his first time was with a girl who he had been dating for five months. Before that, DeMarcus and his girlfriend had talked about having sex, and she said she wanted to do it.

“It was my first time, and was kind of planned,” DeMarcus said. “I had a talk with my brothers before, because we’re close. I went and asked them and they explained it to me.”

Even though he talked with his brothers, he was still nervous. He compared how he prepared for his first time to the song “Wet Dreamz” by J. Cole where the artist talks about his nervousness when he first lost his virginity.

“The first time, you don’t know what you’re doing,” DeMarcus said. “Especially when you both don’t know what you’re do-

don’t want me doing something, you can tell me that,’” Peter said. “I made sure she was okay with whatever I was doing and if she was in a comfortable position and if she was comfortable with where we were doing it.”

Amelia appreciates Peter and DeMarcus’ concerns about consent and overstepping their partners’ boundaries because generationally, that might not have been the case.

“I think people feel like asking consent is not really sexy, but you can ask consent silently,” Amelia said. “You can just move slowly and like there’s no response, stay there. There’s so many ways to ask for consent that aren’t awkward.”

Although communication can sometimes be a problem during straight relationships, Betty appreciates the open communication of queer relationships. She feels this is so because in same sex relationships, there are more options that require conversation. In opposite sex relationships, more assumptions can be made about people’s

As they had more experience being intimate with each other, she gained a new understanding of what lesbian sex could be like. It was a very intense emotional process as she felt lots of confusion, anxiety, and excitement throughout. She enjoyed the sense of validation in her sexual identity that she gained from being with her partner. However, along with those emotions came sadness of having to hide their relationship from the world.

“I wished I could go hug and kiss her in class the next day,” Betty said. “I wished I could hold hands with her. I wanted to be closer to her more often to be able to have that intimacy and feel that connection in a different way.”

Going into her first experience with sex, Dory started to realize that her previous perception of sex from the media was false. The idea that her experience would be very casual seemed too unrealistic.

“It meant a lot because I’d never been that vulnerable with somebody,” Dory said. “The fact that he would be seeing me like

“When you have sex with somebody... you don’t just have sex with somebody. That’s a really deep connection that you’re form ing with that person.” - Dory

ing, you’re trying to figure this out.”

He was also nervous going into it because he feared making his partner uncomfortable by accidentally overstepping her boundaries. He had heard stories of men getting falsely accused of sexual assault, and did not want to go through the same thing.

“I don’t want to be the one to make the first move unless I’m 100% sure she’s fine with it and she’s given consent,” DeMarcus said. “Many people that I know are afraid to do it because of that reason.”

He gets upset when he feels someone is pressuring him into doing something he does not want to, so he thinks it is important to make sure his partner is comfortable.

Peter’s thought process was similar to DeMarcus’ in that he was concerned for his girlfriend’s comfortability. He did not want her to be afraid to tell him if she was uncomfortable.

“The first conversation was, ‘If you ever

roles which leads to less open communication.

Her first queer experience with intimate physical touch was when she was in high school. At the time, it was scary to be open about your sexuality, so it was hard for her to find other people that were bisexual or lesbian.

“It was kind of nice because everything was brand new,” Betty said. “There were no expectations so it was like going on an adventure.”

Because of the political and social state of the world, their relationship had to stay a secret. Betty described the relationship as very intimate, but scary because both her and her partner were at risk of people finding out about their sexual identities.

“I didn’t even know what [queer sex] could conceptually be like because there was no access,” Betty said. “Just knowing it was a thing was really cool and I became more curious.”

that for the first time and we would just go on like nothing ever happened, I did not be lieve that would be real.”

Looking back, Dory would change nothing about her first time. She felt like she chose the right time to have sex be cause she waited until she was ready. The whole experience made her realize that the media has put too much emphasis on the idea of “no strings attached” relationships. Now that she has been in those shoes, she realized it is not real.

“I wouldn’t say I had feelings for him,” Dory said. “Even now, I don’t have feel ings for him, but I feel like we definitely have something. Because we were each other’s firsts, it’s not nothing.”

Since then, Dory has gotten into a new relationship, and is able to have sex with someone who she is committed to. She thinks depictions of sex in the media where characters are with their significant others are most accurate because she feels that is

who you should be having sex with.

“It’s very different because now it feels a lot more emotional. There’s a lot more to it,” Dory said. “It’s not just like we’re horny, and we’re trying to get our urges out. We actually love each other.”

Since Betty’s first time having sex, she feels her relationships are less awkward because of the acceptance of the queer community nowadays. The only thing she wishes could have changed was if she could have been in this era where people are so open about different kinds of rela tionships.

“It became really great after that when things started changing so much as a polit ical and societal climate,” Betty said. “Gay marriage wasn’t a thing when I was a kid. It was just a whole new way of looking at things compared to this generation where for most of your young lives this has been a standard of allowance.”

Although Peter wishes he would have waited longer to have sex lat er in life, after losing his virginity, he felt more mature and proud of himself.

“...Maybe you’re not ready if you can’t talk about hard things,” - Amelia

pleted rape in her lifetime.

“You think that people can respect boundaries and you can realize that people can choose not to,” she said.

Amelia believes that although we are obsessed with sex as a culture, we are not sex positive. Everyone places sex on a pedestal, but actually communicating with your partner and having open conversations is seen as embarrassing and shameful. Amelia’s advice is as follows:

“Talk to each other, communicate. If you can’t say sexual terms to the person you are about to have sex with, maybe don’t have sex with them. Maybe you’re not ready if you can’t talk about hard things.”

My haiRitage...

Navigating haircare and identity with curls

ARTICLE BY APARNA AYYADEVARA • PHOTOS & DESIGN BY KYLA ULUG

Identity is shaped by many factors, whether it is shaped by those around you or by the choices you make, and hair is no exception.

Senior Kavya Patel wishes she had people to reach out to while finding herself and figuring out her hair type. In the past she had found a few curly hair articles or old YouTube videos to help guide her.

Senior Yaser Osman grew up in a predominantly white community; connecting with other people with his hair type was a struggle. He feels that each kid that has grown up with curly hair had difficult experiences due to the lack of representation through the media or through family members.

“In elementary school there was only one other black kid so we just had each other,” Osman said.

Patel is the only one in her family that grew up with curly hair, and at first it was hard for her to find her footing with her hair type.

“In Bollywood and Hollywood, you don’t really see anyone with curly hair,” Patel said.

Junior Abigail Beyene struggled with her identity due to her hair. Beyene feels that the lack of representation can affect kids’ self image.

Beyene went to an elementary school that lacked racial diversity and mostly consisted of White and Asian kids.

“As a whole elementary school, there were only like three people who were black,” Beyene said.

That became a struggle for Beyene because not only was there a lack of representation throughout her youth, it was also hard for her to find people with her hair type in the media. Which slowly built up the desire to look like everyone else.

“In elementary school, I would relax my hair so by middle school the curl pattern was gone,” Beyene said.

“Hair relaxing” is similar to a perm in that the texture of one’s hair changes, but

Kavya Patel (12) poses with her curls.

rather than becoming curlier it becomes straighter and smoother. Relaxer is a lotion, the chemicals in the relaxer take the hair and break down the di-sulfide bonds found in hair follicles and reforms hair to become straighter. Beyene felt once she got older that by relaxing her hair, she erased her curl pattern and broke the connection with her hair. Beyene struggled with embracing herself and her curls in elementary and middle school, however coming to UPA which had more diversity and representation, she started to feel more comfortable with her hair.

Despite difficulties finding others with similar hair types, bonding over hair with family for Osman has been vitally important during the journey of someone with curls.

“When I see someone with curly hair I’m gonna talk to them about the products they use and their routine,” Osman said.

When Patel was younger she would do two braids on the side or put water on her hair everyday. As she got older, her routine has transitioned to be more complex and in depth.

Patel washes her hair twice a week with shampoo and conditioner from Bondi Boost HG. After her shower, she adds a Shea Moisture strengthen and restore leave-in conditioner.

For a daily routine she gets her hair really wet and then uses Miss Jessie’s jelly soft curl gel and Function of Beauty wavy hair mousse for volume. The change in her routine started to occur when she would see people on tiktok start their curly hair journey, she took inspiration from that and started to feel more confident.

As for Beyene, she has two routines: one for when her hair is natural and one for when her hair is in box braids.

“For natural hair, if it’s a wash day I usually start with a hair mask and leave it in for around an hour or two,” she said.

After the mask has set for an hour or two, she washes it out with Argan Oil of Morocco to hydrate her scalp and she double shampoos and uses Shea Moisture conditioner once. After her shower, she takes Mielle Organics Leave-In conditioner and then detangles her hair with a tangle teezer brush.

Then to style, she puts Not My Mothers mousse to lock in moisture and then she uses Uncle Funky’s gel in sections to keep her hair in place and stop frizz and flyaways. When Beyene has her hair in box braids, she goes in with Meille Rosemary oil on her scalp. Once a week she uses oil and moose then wraps it to refresh the braids.

In freshman Miles Hines’ case, he received help with his curly hair routine from his siblings and mother. When Hines was in both 6th and 7th grade, he would either have his hair in braids or his hair buzzed off. At first, when he asked his eldest sister for hair advice on how he should maintain it or how to keep the curls from falling, she would not always take him seriously because she was not sure that he was dedicated to the process; after his mother’s passing, he decided to take his journey to a different level.

“When my mom passed, I started to grow my hair to honor her memory since she had curly hair,” Hines said.

He keeps the same routine as her because they have the same hair type. Hines has had different situations with his hair because of his mothers passing, he found it at first a little difficult to navigate what to do with his.

“My sister gave me my routine, the products my mom used and the routine.” Hines said.

He tries to be very consistent with the routine his mom had so he can truly honor her and her memory.

Hines has grown to know how his hair is structured because his oldest sister taught him how. Hines’ routine starts with Shea Moisture shampoo and conditioner once a week. Then he uses Miss Jessie’s curl cream and moose. Every other day he conditions his hair and on the days he does not wash his hair, Hines uses a shower cap to protect his curls from the humidity of the shower.

Similarly, Osman also takes inspiration from his siblings. More notably, his older brother, who helped him make his perfect curly hair routine and on his journey.

ture Boosting Shampoo. He washes that out thoroughly and then adds Shea Moisture Daily Hydration conditioner and detangle.

“[I] make sure to detangle every section because it’ll last an entire week,” Osman said.

Then wash out the conditioner with cold water again. After washing his hair, he

" When my mom passed, I started to grow my hair to honor her memory since she had curly hair." - Miles Hines

air-dries it and then when it’s damp takes an immense amount of Moisture Miracle leave-in conditioner and goes through his hair thoroughly. Then he lets his hair dry before wearing a bonnet.

“I wear a bonnet because it keeps my hair from becoming frizzy and it stays curly,” Osman said.

When he wakes up, he uses a spray bottle to refresh his curls.

Throughout Patel’s younger years she has struggled with finding confidence in her hair but there has been one celebrity that she has connected with.

“I have always looked up to Julia Roberts because in her movies, they would always keep her hair natural,” Patel said. “It would make [me] slightly feel better about my hair.”

Patel struggled with her family and they would make jokes about maybe she was adopted because she did not have the same hair. Ultimately, she knows they were joking and says she feels special and unique but since they did not have curly hair she grew up with a lot of negative feelings towards her hair.

“My brother already went through this whole thing, so everything was already in the bathroom like all the conditioner and the comb,” Osman said.

His routine first starts off with cold water and then he uses Shea Moisture, Mois-

“My family would just comb my hair over and over again to get that almost straight hair effect, but it was just puffy,” Patel said. “Until middle school I didn’t even know I had curly hair.”

Insecurity played a big part in many

" I no longer feel in secure or that I need to neglect my hair."

- Abigail beyene

people’s hair journey because of a lack of representation in communities. Patel spoke about how she felt insecure about her hair because she did not see it in her culture or even her family, which made her struggle with finding the perfect hair routine.

“I think for the longest time I hated my hair, so that is why I would always cut my hair and put it in two braids,” Patel said.

Patel feels more confident with who she is because of her hair. Different social media apps have helped Patel especially because of her lack of resources such as just common knowledge about her hair.

“I looked at a lot of YouTube videos, but when TikTok became more popular, it became easier to help me with my hair.” Patel said.

Beyene felt that around the world, there is stigma against curly hair. The beauty standards around the world is often straight slick hair, compared to curly hair which is coarse and textured.

“People have perceived curly hair as loud or disruptive,” Beyene said.

This reason has made her struggle with her hair and caused insecurities for Beyene. In the community Beyene grew up in,

her family and the surrounding community had similar hair types so she never felt different. However, she noticed that there was a difference in society and how she was being treated, causing Beyene to struggle under the judgemental views of her peers because of a lack of community outside her family.

“When I think of society in general, how people weren’t allowed to embrace their hair, I feel proud I no longer feel insecure or that I need to neglect my hair.” Beyene said.

Trends throughout history have changed but still have hints of animosity towards curly hair. In the 50s hairstyles and trends would often be loose curling iron hair or extravagant updos. The most iconic hairstyle is known as the bouffant, a blunt straight bob. Another trendy hairstyle from the 50s would be pin curls– a loose curl created by a curling iron, then pinned down to keep the curl from falling.

Now that we have entered a new generation, there are many new trends like the clean girl aesthetic. This is a trend which is where makeup is minimal and hair is slick back. This hairstyle is often straight hair and very clean. No frizz and no mess. Beyene feels that this hairstyle can often be romatized by people who see no frizz and no mess as a better option which can be harmful for people with curly hair.

“When women of color would have oiled hair, people would say greasy hair wasn’t beautiful, but when white girls would do this trend, people in the media would say healthy hair journey,” Beyene said.

Another trend is the messy bun, often romanticized by the media. Beyene feels that hairstyles through the media are seen differently on everyone because of race.

“The hairstyle is seen as cute on white girls but when black girls have ‘messy hair’ it is seen as ghetto,” Beyene said.

Beyene growing up has noticed that in this generation, people have come to terms with the saying “all hair is beautiful and shouldnt be treated differently.” Beyene feels that the media has only now started to become progressive and more diverse, the younger gener-

ation will not need to struggle as much as this one has. But since they have had to, Beyene, Patel and Osman all wish for the younger generation to learn and appreciate their curly hair from the beginning and to use all the resources they can find. Beyene has had multiple experiences where she has struggled to honor her hair and to wear her hair in the way that she feels the most comfortable and confident.

Patel as well has struggled finding confidence in her hair but there has been one celebrity that she has connected with.

Beyene now has learned the process of her hair and how to love and respect it. Her hair has been very impactful to her life and her confidence. Beyene feels that since society has changed over time and so has how people feel with their hair.

“Walking into a place and getting compliments about my hair instead of being judged because hair has been so neglected by society,” Beyene said.

She feels that she is more respected by society because of the change of history and the lack of animosity towards her curly hair.

Patel used to always want straight hair. She used to cut it short because it is too hard to manage. But now that she has come to terms with her hair and how she feels about it.

“I struggled with finding the meaning towards my hair cause everyone around me had different hair,” Patel said.

She has given more effort to her hair and cares more about it because of the change of media. As she has grown to love her hair even though she still has challenges with it.

“Some days I still hate my hair but at the same time I have learned to love it,” Patel said.

Left: Yaser Osman (12). Right: Kavya Patel (12).

Bnailed it.

UPA students’ discovery of nail design and its impacts on their wellbeing

ARTICLE BY KAREN HENG • DESIGN AND ILLUSTRATIONS BY SHIBANI GHOSH

eing able to creatively express yourself means the sky’s the limit. Students at UPA are using nail design as a hobby and a way to express themselves.

Senior Jasmine Nguyen discovered nail design when she was three-years-old through her mom, who was a nail technician. The initial interest sparked when Jasmine noticed her mom’s expression of emotions through her nail designs. Growing up, Jasmine felt like it was difficult for her to open up and found customizing her nails to be a way of telling her story or expressing how she felt. However, she was not serious about the hobby until the pandemic.

“I was really bored and I saw a photo of someone that had really cool French nails as it was colorful and had patterns on it,” Jasmine said.

Jasmine learned to design nails through YouTube videos. Her journey was both a physical and mental struggle. Technicality-wise, it was difficult for her to learn the techniques, what polishes to use and understanding the overall processes. Since she was learning during the pandemic, she did not exactly understand herself, so doing her nails allowed her to reflect and learn to enjoy time with herself.

She usually sets aside time to do her nails every other weekend. The inspiration for her nails come from photos from platforms such as Instagram, but also from her current emotions based on her current life.

“Designing helps me be calm, collect my thoughts and reassess myself,” Jasmine said.

Jasmine’s general process starts with her sketching out her ideas on her iPad. Once the idea has come to fruition, she starts the actual process of designing. She begins with a base coat to make sure it stays on for approximately two to four weeks, then she applies the colors. If doing a more intricate design, she uses rhinestone glue and sometimes puts in charms or gems to make a 3D design.

learned how to trust the process. The easiest thing about nail design is creating the vision she has for her nails.

“There’s always a vision going into it and if you don’t like it, you can always restart,” Jasmine said. “You’re able to personalize it and give character to it.”

On the other hand, junior Kathy Nguyen began to paint her nails during the pandemic as her parents would not let her wear makeup. She developed an interest in nail design around the summer of 2023. She is also selftaught and draws inspiration from Douyin-styled nails. Douyin is a Chinese social media platform and their style of nails usually consist of long nails with elegant designs frequently utilizing sheer-finish polishes. The nails generally have cute accessories such as bows or gems added to them.

There are many types of nail polish, but she prefers to use polygel and then overlay it with gel polish. Polygel is a form of nail extension and usually comes in a tube. She likes to use it because it’s really easy and you can mold a fake nail on it instead of needing an actual nail.

For any design that requires fine lines, she uses a fine tip brush and goes in with the gel polishes. When she uses the gel polishes, she has to put the gel on separately to make sure there is no cross contamination between the colors.

To Jasmine, the most difficult aspect of nail design is patience.

“It’s very difficult to sit down for a long period of time and posture, it’s dif- ficult to do it without hunching over because you need to be precise,” she said. Though it comes with some negative side-effects, such as squinting or inhaling the gel fumes, she has

While Kathy prefers to use polygel, her usual nail design process is different. Since she is putting on a fake nail, she has to cut her nails short. She removes any nail polish that she has on and files the plate of her nail to create a grip for the fake nail. Afterwards, she applies a base coat and cures it and then puts on the polygel. She does another layer of the base coat before applying the gel nail colors. She repeats the step of applying the layer of the gel nail polish then curing it with a UV it to build up the color’s opacity. Once completed, she begins designing or putting gems on her nails with nail glue which also requires curing. Kathy lastly adds a top coat and cures it to complete the look.

Similar to Jasmine, this hobby has taught Kathy more patience as designing one’s nails is a long process.

“For this kind of stuff you need to take your time. I think it really teaches me patience, coordination and a bit of sculpting,” said Kathy.

GREEK

Feastin '

Comparing affordable and unique Greek food experiences in the Bay Area

ARTICLE & PHOTOS BY SNEHA MADAN & ANGEL FROUMIS • DESIGN BY ANGEL FROUMIS

The Bay Area has numerous fast food and fine dining Greek food options to choose from, but we wanted to find out which experience is most worth it. We tried The Greek Spot, which is a quick inexpensive option and Opa! which is more of an authentic and grand experience. Let’s eat!

The Greek Spot

Upon entering the restaurant, we noticed it was cute, clean, spacious and fairly empty for a Friday afternoon. Flowers in vases decorated each table and paintings of Greek beaches and architecture seemed to transport us to Greece. The restaurant not only had a relaxing ambi-

ance but also quick service.

This quiet hidden gem in Blossom Valley is the perfect place to grab lunch with friends, especially when on a budget. The food is less expensive than at a fine dining Greek restaurant which would cost anywhere from $75-150 for a meal for three to four people.

We ordered four dishes to try, the first being the spanakopita. This dish is phyllo, a type of thin pastry, filled with spinach and feta cheese. The phyllo pastry was crispy and flaky. Its filling was a warm combination of tangy and salty. The dish was $9.

Chicken souvlaki, a marinated grilled meat, can be eaten in a kabob or a wrap, both costing $12, but we were curious to try it in a pita wrap. The chicken was covered in a honey mustard sauce with fries, feta, tomatoes and onions. The meat was tender and well seasoned and the sauce had a sweet and tart flavor.

The third dish we tried was the lamb gyro, a very common Greek dish found in all Greek restaurants. The gyro had flavorful roasted meat wrapped in a pita, and was $12. The gyro meat was thinly sliced and served with refreshing yogurt tzatziki sauce. Like the chicken souvlaki wrap, the gyro also contained fries, onions and tomatoes, creating well-balanced flavors.

We also ordered a popular carbonated Greek soft drink, Loux. It comes in a variety of flavors including orange, lemonade and sour cherry—though we only tried the first two. It was very refreshing with the meal and added a sweet and tangy taste to contrast the savory flavors of the dishes. We would definitely recommend pairing this drink with your meal.

For dessert, we ordered the $9 loukoumades, which are a Greek version of donut holes, but coated in honey, cinnamon and walnuts. They were a nice blend of crunchy on the outside but also sweet and soft on the inside. Personally, we did not think this dessert was worth the price, especially because it is only enjoyable when fresh, and the quantity we received needed to be taken home as leftovers.

At the Greek Spot, we were encouraged to clean up after ourselves, stack dishes, and throw away trash, which is unnecessary at fine dining restaurants, though we did not mind the quick cleanup. Overall, The Greek Spot is an excellent way to experience traditional Greek food that is quickly served and inexpensive.

Opa!

In the heart of Willow Glen, Opa! is an authentic Greek mini-chain restaurant

with a beautiful surrounding area. With a fountain located by the entrance, it is the perfect spot for a fine-dining experience with friends and family, especially when lit up at night.

Walking in, we noticed the welcoming atmosphere of the restaurant as it was relatively empty for a Friday evening. Our waiter was accommodating and adjusted our reservation for a more spacious table. There was instrumental Greek music playing in the background which was a pleasant addition to the dim lighting of the restaurant. The wait was not too long and we got our dishes not long after ordering.

The first dish we ordered, an appetizer, was Saganaki. It is grilled Kasseri cheese served flaming on a flat iron skillet with a side of warm pita bread and was $17. The presentation of this dish was incredible as the waiter lit the cheese on fire. It was very impressive to watch, and all the employees exclaimed “Opa!” after putting out the flame. “Opa” is a common traditional expression used during Greek celebrations to express enthusiasm. Served with pita and lemon, the dish was warm, cheesy and a mouthful of pure delight. The cheese was stringy and relatively difficult to pull apart. However, we would absolutely recommend this dish, not only for its fun presentation, but also because it is easy to share with the table.

The next dish was the chicken Gyro fries which were $15. It came with finely sliced chicken, sprinkled with feta cheese, a fiery feta dip and a spicy Tabasco ranch drizzle. The chicken worked perfectly with the sauce and the spice level was perfect, not too high, but not too bland with the refreshing drizzle. The temperatures of all the components were well balanced and it

was very tempting to keep eating.

The third dish we ordered was the Apollo pizza made with marinara sauce, heirloom tomatoes, mozzarella, feta crumbles and fresh basil, costing $19.50. The crust was thin and crispy and the dish was drizzled in balsamic which added a delicious refined flavor.

The last dish we ordered was the Pasticio, a layered pasta casserole with spiced beef topped with a creamy bechamel sauce. It was served with a side of horiatiki, a Greek salad. The pasticio had distinct strong flavors of cloves and nutmeg and was quite filling. It is a must-try traditional Greek dish, because of its homemade feel, though it was a little pricier, at $27.

The horiatiki was presented well with a variety of colors and flavors. It consisted of olives, tomatoes, onions, bell peppers, cucumbers and was topped with feta crumbles. Everything was well seasoned and the flavor of the oil and vinegar drizzle was present throughout the whole salad. It was a refreshing add-on to the meal.

Our experience at Opa! was one of a kind. Though the dishes were definitely more pricey, it was worth the extra cost. Their more traditional dishes tended to be more expensive, however they do have more unique dishes that are Greek-inspired and cheaper. The hospitality of the employees was inviting and truly gave us a memorable experience we would love to go back to.

Overall, at Opa!, the food kept better as leftovers, and the price was justified in the quality of the food. The dishes were presented in a more elegant manner,and their flavors were more sophisticated. Additionally, the outside appearance of the restaurant was more impressive, especially if you

are eating there for a celebration or special event with loved ones. The staff was also more enthusiastic, friendly and ensured the experience was special. Though the Greek Spot offered more reasonable prices, the experience was not as notable, and the restaurant’s exterior was not as captivating. It was charming on the inside and the quality of food and service was adequate, however it still did not compare to the experience of eating at Opa!

Lamb gyro from The Greek Spot

Gyro fries from Opa!

Pasticio from Opa!

Flaming Sagonaki from Opa!

Treat

A little Sweet !

ARTICLE BY SHAYNA TRAN & TAYLOR NGUYEN

BY TAYLOR NGUYEN

• PHOTOS, ILLUSTRATIONS & DESIGN

Reporters Shayna

dip into the world of deli cately shaven snow with new

What better way to cool off from the sun’s beaming rays than a bowl of lactose goodness!!!! We love milk and fruit!

Sulbing opened their first store in the United States—specifically in San Jose, California—in March 2023. This Korean-style shaved ice dessert cafe is originally based in South Korea but expanded their franchise due to the Bay Area’s economic market potential. Better known as “Bingsu” or “Bingsoo,” this deliciously cold sweet treat saved us from the summer heat. Korean Bingsu has a milk base with a finer ice texture with toppings like red bean, mochi, fruit, fruit syrups and condensed milk. On the other hand, Hawaiian shaved ice with a water base is coarser in texture and usually topped with flavored sugar syrups. Along with its various types of Bingsu, Sulbing had a variety of toast, croffles, refreshing drinks and savory options coming soon.

Although Sulbing only offers a quarter of their menu in the U.S. compared to their South Korean counterpart, it still satisfies our palette and bellies with all bowls cleaned to the rim. The Instagram Reels to the seven second TikTok videos—and even YouTube Shorts—hypnotized us to have a bite of Sulbing’s delectable desserts that are the tastiest the Bay Area has to offer. All of our friends constantly encountered videos of Sulbing’s bingsu with the iconically large piece of tiramisu, which is uniquely different to what we were used to. We were familiar with Bingsus that just come with some pieces of cheesecake, so a big square of tiramisu was so unexpected and something we needed to try. To see if it lives up to the hype, we went with our friends and ordered the most popular Cheese, Premium Strawberry, Bean Injeolmi, and Biscuit.

$18.95 $18.25

Sulbing is a must when trying Bingsu for time, especially when there is a Pre Sulbing option. Premium Strawberry is topped with cheese cake, whipped cream and whole strawberries, while the regular “Strawberry” option is topped only with mochi and strawberries. The strawberries were both sweet and slightly tart, so it balanced out the sweetness of the prominent strawberry syrup and cheesecake. Whipped cream on top made it extra creamy and a nice texture difference. Each spoonful of refreshing strawberry delight made us reach for it more and more, finishing this particular Bingsu the quickest.

When we first saw the Mango Cheese Sulbing, we were already drooling. There was so much mango covering the ice and a big scoop of ice cream on the top. The mango was ripe and very sweet, but it still tasted fresh. The shaved ice melts in your mouth, but when it mixes with the mango sauce, it is the most delicious combination. It made the perfect spoonful of mango ice cream. The cheesecake bites were not overpowering, giving the right texture and taste to the Bingsu. It was not too heavy and made the Bingsu extra creamy, resulting in an unexpected delicious combination. It was definitely our favorite.

“Tiramisu Sulbing” was magical and a must get for coffee lovers! Espresso came warm in a cute little cup, but when pouring it over the Bingsu it was so messy. It splashed and dripped off the Bingsu, instead of steeping into the tiramisu and ice. Our trick was to move the tiramisu aside and pour espresso on the Bingsu, then eat it with the tiramisu. The three vanilla ice cream scoops made the shaved ice creamy when it melted into it. Our favorite part was the tiramisu cake which made the whole experience worth it. It had the perfect balance between savory coffee and sweet syrup. However, the tiramisu is delivered slightly frozen, so let it sit out for a bit and it’ll be the perfect consistency to scoop.

$18.25

The “Red Bean Injeolmi Sulbing” was surprisingly very flavor ful compared to other Bingsu places. Injeolmi flavor comes from roasted soybean powder, which gives an almost peanut butter fla vor. The injeolmi was much richer in nutty flavor and generous with the powder. The combination of the red bean, smooth ice and peanut flavor reminded us of the Vietnamese dessert chè, a hearty dessert that comes in a variety of liquid forms, because of how well the red bean complemented the other flavors. The mochi bits were a little salty, so overall it felt really natural and had earthy components. It wasn’t too sweet, so it was a nice contrast to the other flavors.

$14.95

We were so excited for the Biscuit Sulbing, but we were disappointed. At first, it tasted yummy, but compared to the other fruit Bingsus, it just did not compare. The shaved ice was so soft like clouds and melted into our mouths, while the other bingsus had some chunky ice parts. We understand that some Bingsus had more chunky ice because we ordered all five of the bingsus at the same time. The biscuits tasted nostalgic—like the biscuits grandmothers offer to their grandchildren from the tin cookie box full of petite treasures—but it was overall plain and just felt like powder, instead of holding actual flavor.

$15.25

GGotta Catch’em All

Palworld or Pokemon—which game is best?

ARTICLE BY JACOB JIMENEZ • DESIGN & ILLUSTRATIONS BY KAREN HENG

otta Catch’em All, a common phrase used at least once in a gamer’s life and many times in my own.

Video games have been a part of my life for some time now. It’s been like that ever since my dad bought me and my brother a Xbox 360 when we were young. Pokemon has been a significant game from my childhood ever since I got a Nintendo 3DS—it being the main way to play Pokemon games for more than half of my life. But, with the release

of Palworld, I’ve been questioning which game is better.

Experiences of Pokemon

Founded in 1998 the Pokemon Company has a series of a whopping 135 game titles and eight shows that navigate across nine different fictional geographic regions. The shows lead you through the adventures of Ash Ketchum, a 12-year-old boy with aspirations of becoming a Pokemon master, throughout the different regions.

I first got into the show back when I was five or six-

years-old and waited for a new episode to be released every week once I got caught up with the series. I got into the Pokemon games with the release of Pokemon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire in 2014. The game lets you immerse yourself in the lore and experience of these adventures in the Hoenn region. By catching your Pokemon, battling in Pokemon gyms, and defeating gym leaders—one can progress further into different areas where there will be stronger Pokemon to catch or “faint” to gain exp to level up your own Pokemon. When I played Pokemon Alpha Sapphire, I chose Mudkip as my starter because of my love for axolotls and Mudkips design was based off of one. However, my favorite starter isn’t Mudkip. It is Piplup—the penguin Pokemon. It is my favorite starter mostly because of its evolution named Empoleon, the emperor Pokemon that turns into a water/steel type, which is weak to electric fighting and ground but can learn moves to counter those types of Pokemon. Recently I haven’t really been playing the pokemon games as much anymore but with the expected release of Pokemon Z-A coming out in 2025, I plan on buying it as soon as possible.

Experiences of Palword

Palword is an open-world survival game with every part of the map being harder than the last. Players gather materials and craft a wide variety of crafting stations for their base. They use palspheres and different weapons starting with a club to capture some of the 137 different species of pals.

Pals are companions players assign tasks to in order to automate crafting, cooking and even gathering resources. They speed up these tasks with different pals doing better in certain tasks with work suitability. Work suitability is an extensive range of how good a pal can do in certain situations such as kindling, which will allow the pal to power furnaces and help cook food.

To catch every pal and survive in the world, you have to learn to adapt and play as carefully as possible while also being as aggressive as you can. Since this is an open-world game, one can go anywhere without any restriction, leading players to stock up on palspheres and go to some of the highest recommended level areas and capture pals there.

Later on, I regretted this because of two bosses— Paladius and Necromus— spawned together. In total, there were six bosses in one spot all attacking me and my pals, which led me to take a break from the game for a bit because of the frustration. Then I went back to the game with the idea of going to fight them at night because Paladius is asleep during the night while Necromus stays awake, cutting the number of bosses in half. It eventually led me to catch Necromus and Paladius just a few hours later.

Which Game is Better

Pokemon and Palworld have their fair share of differences but one similarity is the capturing system. They both require throwing a spherical device for a chance to catch the creature within three shakes, with the chances improving off of each shake. Players can also improve this chance by getting the creature low, but in Palworld you can throw the palsphere from behind the pal—by using another pal as a distraction— to get an even higher chance than that.

I would argue that Pokemon is the better franchise due to the amount of games you can play and still have some replayability due to shiny hunting. A shiny Pokemon is a different colored variant of the Pokemon with a 1 in every 8,194 or a 0.012% chance of finding a shiny with every encounter. It’ll take some time and a lot of game resets but eventually, the satisfaction of getting every shiny is worth the wait. At last my opinion still resides with Pokemon being the better game overall.

I started this game very confused about what to do because it just plops you into the world, but to be fair I skipped the intro cutscene that might have been important. Since I turned up the difficulty to the max and increased the spawn rates from 1:1 to a 1:3 ratio, it made the game harder than usual.